Though Red Bull sits fourth in the Constructors’ Championship and Max Verstappen only third in the Drivers’ title after nine rounds, Christian Horner insists his team is not giving up on F1 2025.

With sweeping new regulations set to be introduced next season, teams face a difficult balancing act between investing in the current campaign and switching their attention to F1’s forthcoming era.

Horner insists Red Bull won’t give up in McLaren title race

The introduction of radical new rules threatens to rewrite the competitive order courtesy of dramatic simultaneous changes to the chassis and power units.

Active aerodynamics will be introduced in conjunction with new engine rules that increase the reliance on electrical energy to 50 per cent.

Adding to that complexity for Red Bull is that it into F1 2026 with its own power unit for the first time.

It’s a significant investment from the operation for a squad that has enjoyed world championship success with Renault and Honda power.

Limitations imposed by the financial regulations are also a factor, leaving teams with limited resources. That gives rise for teams to sacrifice F1 2025 and focus on next year.

A team switching focus now could enjoy a competitive head start over its rivals next season, but would come at the cost of its ability to continue challenging as the current campaign wears on.

As it stands, Red Bull’s fortunes on track have slipped this season, with Verstappen only third behind points leader Oscar Piastri, the Australian 49 points ahead.

The Red Bull RB21 is a difficult car, with neither Liam Lawson nor Yuki Tsunoda proving capable of approaching Verstappen’s performances in it thus far.

It leaves the squad fourth in the Constructors’ Championship with 144 versus the 362 amassed by McLaren in the opening nine races.

Though that 218-point deficit already looks insurmountable – it eclipses the 192-point turnaround McLaren realised to win last year’s title – Horner refuses to admit defeat and remains focused on success in F1 2025.

“There’s a significant gap now, but there’s an awful lot of points still available,” he insisted.

“We’re not even halfway through the year.

“McLaren are in a very strong position, but we never give up.”

Red Bull’s charge has been led by Verstappen, who has contributed all but seven of the team’s points thus far.

“He’s out there doing his best,” Horner noted.

“Of course, it’s always difficult; it just looks easier for the car ahead.

“Compared to the rest of the field, you can see we were able to pull away and each of the stints, it’s just the McLaren are clearly a step ahead.”

Red Bull rolled the dice in Spanish GP

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Red Bull adopted a daring three-stop strategy in the Spanish Grand Prix that went close to netting results.

Without the outright pace of the two McLarens ahead, Verstappen emerged within touching distance of Lando Norris in the final stint.

He looked set for a third-place finish as a result, before a late Safety Car left him strategically compromised in the final laps.

“Right up until that Safety Car we were a lot closer to the McLarens through strategy than we should have been,” Horner said.

“They should have been 20 seconds up the road, maybe more, and through the strategy we elected to take, it kept up in the hunt.

“We got a slight chance of an undercut at that last [stop]. I don’t think we’d have kept it, but we might have got track position.

“Up until that point, I felt that we’d done everything right. Pit stops have been strong; the strategy has been right. Unfortunately, the Safety Car at that point comes out.”

Having run a three-stop strategy, Verstappen had precious little in the way of tyres available for the final stanza, which left him vulnerable to those on fresher, soft tyres behind.

A moment exiting the final corner at the Safety Car restart saw the Dutchman fall victim to Charles Leclerc and, ultimately, George Russell too in an incident that triggered the race’s most controversial moment.

It was the result of an aggressive strategy from a Red Bull pit wall still targeting podiums and race wins, rather than settling for its position as next-best behind the papaya operation.

“With 20-20 hindsight, you’d have left him out,” Horner conceded.

“He would have got passed by the two McLarens. Would he have got passed by Leclerc? It’s all subjective.

“The risk with going onto the three-stop is that the Safety Car scenario, in the last third of the race, or quarter of the race, you’re exposed.”

Meanwhile, Verstappen is less optimistic, suggesting Red Bull is already consigned to best of the rest, at best, behind McLaren.

“I never said I was in a championship fight,” said the Dutchman who has taken the last for titles.

“First of all, I think every race has been rough. You know, when they [McLaren] get their things right, they’re unbeatable.

“I think that’s quite clear to see.”

Verstappen was ultimately penalised in Spain for contact with George Russell in the closing laps, a move that leaves him just one point away from a race ban.

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